Growing up I was exposed to many saints and their miracles. Between my Mother and Grandmother I heard plenty of stories. One of my favorites is the story of St. Anthony and how he helps find lost items or persons.
One time, while in high school I asked my mother if I would ever find a boyfriend. Her answer was, "Pray to St. Anthony!" She then told me this story:
"Once there lived a young girl who wanted to find a young man. It seems that none of the men in her village seemed interested in her. She lamented that she would never find anyone and was told by her mother to pray to St. Anthony, who was known to find lost things. The young girl prayed and prayed but after a year of praying she said, "I am wasting my time praying to this statue." She threw the large statue out of her second story window.
When she heard a commotion she looked out the window and realized that the statue had struck someone walking past her home. She ran out and asked the people gathered around the inert body to bring the person into the house. The man who had been hit was in a coma and she, feeling guilty for having caused his illness, began nursing him back to health.
One day the man awoke and opened his eyes. Seeing the lovely girl taking care of him, he fell in love. She looked at him and realized that he was a very handsome young man with long, dark eyelashes. Their love blossomed and when he was fully recovered, they ended up getting married.
She then knew that her prayers to St. Anthony had been answered!"
I know that when I lose something, the first thought is to pray to St. Anthony. Today, January 17, I see on the calendar that it is St. Anthony's feast day and thought I would do my blog on him.
Imagine my surprise when I found out that there are two St. Anthony's. The one I am familiar with has a feast day on June 13 and is known as St. Anthony of Padua. Today's St. Anthony is from Egypt and is from the 3rd century. He is known as the first abbot of monks. Live and learn!
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